SANTA CLARA, Calif. — The San Francisco 49ers have a new home, at least for their next two games.
As had been expected since Santa Clara County announced on Saturday new COVID-19-related restrictions that prevent contact sports in the county for at least the next three weeks, the Niners announced Monday morning that they will hold their next two games at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona.
That, of course, is the home of the Cardinals, who have no day-of-game scheduling conflicts with the Niners moving forward.
“The Cardinals organization, State Farm Stadium and League officials have been supportive and accommodating as we work through the many logistical issues involved in relocating NFL games,” the 49ers said in a statement.
Monday’s announcement means the Niners will “host” the Buffalo Bills for Monday Night Football on Dec. 7 and the Washington Football Team on Dec. 13 in Arizona. The Niners’ other game in that three-week time frame is set for Dec. 20 in Dallas against the Cowboys.
The Niners are still working through where they will practice for the next few weeks. Their preference is to stay in the Bay Area for practice and fly to Arizona for games, but that might not be feasible logistically.
If those arrangements can’t be worked out, the Niners would likely set up a sort of bubble in Arizona, where they could practice and stay between games.